.....what I write when I am not writing software codes. Almost as illogical.

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Give me a high five... I turned FIVE !

March 2009.

I was working at a MNC in Bangalore, as a
software programmer. Even so, I was on bench. Bench is defined as that
situation in an IT industry, when the organization pays you to stay away from
their projects. Like my Mom who was at a point ready to pay
me to shut up and stay out of the kitchen. However I got a workstation assigned to me that involves a
revolving chair whose ability to revolve was completely baseless as there was
no John Abraham sitting in the adjacent cubicle. In fact there was a
malnourished guy, who was also so short that he looked like a 7 year old. With
such people around we should have opaque cubicles and chairs that do not allow us to look around. The
computer assigned to me was prehistoric, and looked like a front load washing
machine. The only sites we got to browse were the portals of that very
organization which otherwise we wouldn't browse even at gunpoint. Those were orkut
days, Mark Zuckerberg was still in college, whatsapp was not conceived yet and Yo
Yo Honey Singh was still roaming around with his Bio data and nursery school
light music video on Mumbai Locals.

I was newly married,
my husband worked at a firm whose CEO was charged with corruption and sent to
jail and future looked completely bleak for them. Global recession was at its
peak, some of my friends on bench where I worked were fired without any notice,
and my career was basically hanging from the edge of a cliff. We started our
wedded life thus, on a ship which hit two icebergs at once.

But then for newly married couples none of this matters. We
could drink just water and live in a mediocre house like it was a Beverly Hills
mansion as long as we had each other. It was one of those days when I came
across some popular humor blogs. Simple everyday events and conversations were
so hilariously written. I started going to the archives and read between the lines.
Then the thought came to my mind, why not start a blog of my own. Why should
mankind be spared from my literary torture? In fact the characters in my family
were the rarest of the rare in terms of temporary insanity and other matters. I
dint even need to hunt around for topics to write or improvise on existing ones.
And hence the blog was born.

However I was too naive to blog
anonymously. Instead I used my real name, email id and photograph. The blog
became a topic of conversation and content scrutinized at marriages and
baptisms. Many active bloggers of that time quit. There are a few who survived
and even found their way into my friend’s list on Facebook. I even won a contest,
received complimentary hampers, participated in tags, found some great friends,
and somehow the inspiration to write some rubbish or the other continues to
this day! I mean my will to torture people just ceases to diminish:-o

The consistency of my blog can be mainly blamed on some loyal
readers who liked the stuff I wrote. They never missed to comment. They did not
write ‘Hey great post! Mind-blowing! Breathtaking! Nice! Creative! Magical!’
after every post because it wasn't any of those. They shared their thoughts
with me rather than indulging in compliments. And they complimented me
genuinely when they felt I deserved it. And these are the people who helped
sustain this consistent ride, so if you have any problem with the content of
this blog, please blame them. Do you see the top 25 culprits on either side? And they inspired me with their own blogs, which
were equivalent to reading full-fledged best sellers. They taught me how to be
unique in one’s own style.

Thank You !

And the ones who have always taken pride in my blog, and
often been my subject to tease or quote, were my parents and the hubby. They have always been there, and with simple comments and loving gestures, were the
pillars of my existence in this journey .Without the hubby’s jokes, or those blunders that happened really frequently, it would have been difficult
for me to update so often!

So, my blog turned five and counting! Who would have thought
that the outcome of the devil’s workshop on a bench could actually last this long!
I hereby take this wonderful opportunity to thank all the people of that
company who kept me on bench and on the verge of unemployment for so long, that
I woke up and realized that blogs were fun, unlike software codes. I also
thank Microsoft Word for your eternal patience, putting up with all my horrible
spellings and grammar.

I am also immensely grateful to all the
neon shoes wearing females, who thought that I was some narcissist who overused
Microsoft Word, instead of ogling at the pink lipped, gel headed gay boy at the
cafeteria. Last but not the least; I thank everyone from the auto driver who dropped
me at Dairy circle and charged me half my month’s pay, the neighbor who
peeped through my kitchen window, and the stray dogs of Bangalore that ruled the
streets, for being unintentional inspirations to various posts of mine that
finally adds up to 181! ( I used a calculator for that one. I have only ten
fingers)

I've heard my family casually talk to others about my blog. I must say that nothing can be a bigger reward than realizing
that the people I love are proud of me, this being one of the reasons. And it
has steered me along for five whole years, with plenty of support from peers on
blogger.

It was indeed an amazing journey, because I did not start
the blog to win contests, or become famous. Something I started as a time pass
has become an extension of me, and it has become a place where I can be honest
without getting fired.

32 comments:

:D I was just telling Red the other day that your blog is so relatable and has such subtle humor :) Reading your posts makes me feel as if you are talking to me and that's what makes your blog so fun to read. Keep writing and I m really fond of your family for all the light moments they gave me through your posts :D

Hahaha congratulations Anita! 5 years is a huge thing!!! Shows your diligence! and good you were too naive to blog anonymously because honey you are an awesome piece of work. I love reading abotu the incidents at house, at work and what not. Your funny husband and the incidents revolving him. Keep writing and stay blessed!

Hey Anita...Sarayu here!...Hope u remember me ! :) Ur blogs are really good! They have good humor and its fun to read them..Every week i ponder as to what new u will have in your blogs...Love reading them! Btw Hi5 and happy five :)

Congrats on making it five years!!!! It's a great achievement! I am really happy to see my name at 11. . Although I hardly visited the blogosphere for sometime now it's indeed a pleasure to see my name. . Also I am very very happy to have beaten that guy with a 9 year old blog. . :P Keep it coming. .

Hi5 Anita! ...I guess I would say that your blog posts ARE 'magical' too! There's never been a single post which hasn't made me smile/laugh/giggle/chuckle/die laughing ...and what not! I admire your unique sense of humour. I like the angle from which you observe life and the people around you. If laughter is the best medicine, I'll say Anita, that you are an M.B.B.S, M.D., F.R.C.S and F.R.C.P in humour therapy!

Keep up the good work. Here's to many many more years of laughter. Cheers!

congrats on this achievements.. less than 10% of all blogs make it to year 5.. always remember that. And yes, it is awesome when family members finally take note and start gushing as they talk about your blog with pride :)

Happy blog anniversary. You know what you have written about sounds so similar to my story. I am not an IT profession and neither is my husband but both of us started our married life together with the knowledge that our jobs were on the executioner's block. It got a bit more complicated when we realized that there was going to be an addition to the family. But yes, things worked out. However my blogging days began much later ( I am prehistoric compared to you young things :) ). It was a very disturbing personal event that caused it. But I am glad that I am a part of this world. My blog does not have too many comments but there are some loyal people who comment no matter what I write. Thank God for them !!

Half a decade of chronicling your experiences and discovering yourself through your writing is a feat meant to be celebrated. Congratulations of your 5th and wish you many more, Anita :-) Your blog always cheers me up.

Happy 5th Birthday to your blog! I'm proud to be in the top 30 commentators. Infact I'm wondering where I was when you wrote the other 150 posts because I wouldn't want to miss any!You bring a smile to my face, Anita. I mean it :)

Congratulations Anita for 5 wonderful blogging years! :) Here's wishing many many more to come from your end..

Loved your post too.. I remembered my training days too.. A prehistoric system is exactly what I got too! Was not even a P-1, but thats understandable since I was a Mainframes resource.. I used to switch on my machine in the morning, used to go for breakfast, come back and wait for login screen to appear.. Those days!